Author: Leslie
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A Penelope Shower
I cannot believe it’s July. I cannot believe I only have two months until Penelope arrives. I am a fairly impatient person and I love instant gratification, so I always figured that pregnancy for me would feel like the longest 9 months of my life. But 2017 has flown by – we are over halfway…
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What we didn’t DIY
Back in May when I first started posting about our projects for the new home, I mentioned three tasks that we either couldn’t or didn’t want to DIY. These were three top-of-the-list items that had to be taken care of before September when Penelope arrives, and I’m happy to report that they have been checked…
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Side Hustle Life
Back in February when I left Humming House, I found myself facing 9 empty months of waiting for Penny without having the touring schedule and Humming House obligations that had been occupying my time and attention since 2013. I had also lost my occupational identity that I had really cherished as a part of this…
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Refinishing the Stairs Part 1
We figured the wood stairs would be in worse shape than any of the bedroom floors because they endure the most traffic, but we weren’t prepared for the amount of tedious work it would take to whip them into shape. I’ll add: the jury is still out on what kind of shape they’ll be in…
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Monnik Beer Company and Louisville City FC
Javier and I are finally expanding our food & beverage horizons in Louisville. Last year we found a handful of go-to favorite spots (Vietnam Kitchen, Third Turn Brewery, Oishii Sushi, Havana Rumba, Mussel Burger Bar) and stuck to what we knew was good. Then we stopped going out to eat for awhile; sitting in a restaurant during…
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Back to the Bedroom Refinishing…
Utter contentment is chilling on the couch in between two big cuddly dogs listening to “An Elegant Affair” playlist on Spotify (Javier’s choice) while Javi waters orchids. Javier and I had our Birth Class Part 2 tonight and I got *extra* worked up about the insane amount of newborn first-time-mom stress that I’m about to…
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Quick Trip to Cinci
Javi and I took a quick day trip up to Cincinnati on Saturday to visit Danielle, Chris, and Embry in their “new” (now 2-years since they moved in!) house. We’ve been wanting to visit for a long time, but they keep spoiling us by making trips down to Louisville so we’ve been putting it off.…
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Vintage Brass Decor Obsession
I’m not sure if it’s one of those things where I love it so now I see it everywhere or maybe one person in Louisville just recently decided to sprinkle their vintage brass animal collection amongst the thrift stores all over the city, but my vintage brass collection has gone into hyperdrive over the last…
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Finished Gradient Dresser for Penelope’s Nursery
Back in my previous life as a Sociology graduate student at Vanderbilt I was a big fan of a blog called Young House Love. My friend Ashley and I were completely awed by all of the projects this young couple completed, and their blogging style was pure fun to read. When I finished my coursework and delved into…
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Polishing Brass Hardware
Over the last week I’ve been working on refinishing an old wood dresser that has been in my family for a little over 30 years. My mom first got it from a friend when my dad was studying at Princeton, and my brother grew up with this dresser in his room. When I went to college,…
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Step One: Refinishing Bedrooms
There are three items on our must-do list this summer that have to be contracted out, and one major project we want to complete on our own before Penelope arrives in the fall. The items we can’t complete on our own are: Remove a dying tree (that actually belongs to our neighbors) that is hanging…
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New digs in Louisville!
It’s safe to say it’s been the craziest roller coaster of a year ever for me and Javier. In January we found out we were pregnant, in February we listed our Nashville house and in March finalized that sale, in April we put an offer on a new house in Louisville and listed our current Louisville house for…
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Buena Buena update: Vintage Summer
Now that Derby is over, my brain has officially switched into summer mode. It’s a byproduct of growing up here; once Derby ends, there’s only a couple weeks left of school and then summer vacation! Of course this summer is a whirlwind of moving into a new house (more on that later) and not exactly…
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Derby week 2017
Before I get into this, I have to admit we Louisville folks get tunnel vision when it comes to Derby and it’s hard to wrap our minds around the fact that the rest of the country doesn’t *really* care about the festivities. Derby absolutely consumes us – it’s “the most wonderful time of the year…in Louisville.” I actually…
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Kentucky Derby Festival Balloon Glimmer
Things usually go quiet on the blog when I’m feeling super busy; the more I have to write about, the less chances I have to actually sit down and write. Part of that is my complete inability to set a schedule for myself, but now that I’m working from home (photography, editing, managing my shop)…
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Spring in the Shop!
It’s spring in my shop! Here are a few of my favorite items in the shop that usher in the new season; all things light, airy, and colorful in both vintage home decor and clothing. Some of the items are marked down for my spring sale. Mother’s Day is coming up so if you need any inspiration,…
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Goodbye Sweet East Nashville Home
Gather ’round and let me tell you a tale of house hunting in East Nashville in 2011. Back then, the only houses in our very very tight budget were in East Nashville. Our superb realtor Marcie Nash showed us houses all over town, but saved the best one for last: the house that eventually became our sweet first home in South…
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Humming House friends, fans, and family: THANK YOU!
To all my Humming House friends, fans, and family – I’ll preface my entire message with a brief mention that in case you haven’t heard either from my recent blog post or the announcement on Humming House’s page, I decided to leave the band this spring. I have a little kiddo on the way in September,…
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A Penelope Reveal Party
Javier and I were not planning on doing anything special for the sex “reveal” of our kiddo. We didn’t feel much like planning a big to-do, and frankly we didn’t care much which of those parts our baby had as long as that heartbeat was strong and steady (among other health factors). We were able…
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Louisville St. Patrick’s Parade
Back in March 2008 when Javier and I had only been dating about a month we took a trip from Nashville to Louisville so he could meet my high school friends at the St. Patty’s Parade. Back then the parade was an excuse to go bar hopping on Bardstown Road during the day dressed in weird…
Los Rodriguez Life 